Hermione and the Big, Bad Slytherins
by Asha-Blue18
Summary: So far, Hermione's 7th Year has not gone according to plan, leaving her dejected, bored, and lonely. After walking in on a guys-night with the three boys in Hogwarts she would usually never be caught dead drinking with, she does something so very unHermione-like, she asks to be part of their "boyband". DMHG.
1. Chapter 1

**Hermione and the Big, Bad Slytherins**

So far, Hermione's 7th Year has not gone according to plan, leaving her dejected, bored, and lonely. After walking in on a guys-night with the three boys in Hogwarts one would've thought she would never be caught drinking with, she does something so very...unHermione-like, she asks to be part of their "boyband".

* * *

 **CHAPTER 1: Messing with Granger**

Draco smirked to himself. A devilish grin, ready for trouble.

This was good – no, this was _more_ than good. He raised his hand, distracting the muggle-studies professor's attention and gaining the indignation of the girl who was doing the answering. "Professor, I believe that the correct year was 1506, not 1508" he said matter-of-factly "The _Golden Girl_ must be mistaken _…_ "

Her chocolate brown eyes widened, filling him with immense satisfaction. After all, terrorizing and mocking Granger was one of his best hobbies, a surefire way of amusement. The bitch was always in need of being brought down a peg or two.

Right on cue, girl in question sputtered and began furiously going through the copy of the book she had in her arms. "I could be certain I read—

"Yes, good, Draco, very good" Professor Burbage clapped enthusiastically, ignoring his little jab at Hermione Granger, as she was extremely pleased that one of her Slytherins were finally was showing enough interest in her class to answer a question "Answer more questions next time, Draco, and five points for Slytherin"

The few Slytherins in the class cheered, giving him congratulatory claps on the back. He reveled in the attention he was getting at _her_ expense, his lips tugging up at the corners. He glanced over to Granger's desk.

The girl looked stricken, her nose pushed down the book she was looking to for answers. "I-I was wrong?" She mumbled to herself.

"That you were, Granger," he answered for her.

"Oh sod off, Malfoy," She said a little too loudly, spinning around her chair to glare at him. Her cheeks were red with embarrassment.

"Keep it down," Professor Burbage waved at them absently before turning her attention back to the lesson on muggle-made theological architecture.

Still, Draco pressed on, eager to rub it in good at Granger's face "Now I _really_ don't know what people see in you, your brains were the last thing you had to offer"

Hermione's eyes momentarily betrayed a tinge of hurt at his crass words, but never one to back down, she retorted, "You're a foul, slimy git whose only offer to give in life is your considerable trust fund, so shut the hell up"

"Well that's not very nice of you, Granger. Have I struck a nerve _already_?" He replied to her retort, a smirk dancing on his lips "I haven't even started on your _looks_ yet" At this comment, a few of their other classmates snorted, finding this exchange a little more amusing than some muggle architecture lesson.

"Students please, quiet" Professor Burbage said again, this time with a little more force. The murmurs died down. Granger's face had colored to that of a tomato.

"I'll get you later" she muttered darkly under her breath at him, but she didn't speak again. She returned her full attention on the Professor Burbage, valiantly ignoring the jabs at her looks that Draco had started for her. Draco sat back, smug and satisfied, he supposed that was enough fun for the day.

* * *

Hermione was seething. She basically ran out of class and was now going to the direction of Ancient Runes. She sighed in relief. Malfoy would not be there. No one she knew would.

"Miss Granger" Hermione spun around to face the headmistress, who was walking through the halls to catch up with her, her emerald robes billowing behind her. "I assume you are on the way to class?"

"Err, yes, Headmistress" She said with a smile "Ancient Runes"

"Right, well, I won't keep you," McGonagall stated "But since you are responsible for the round schedules of the Prefects, I'd very much like to speak with you once you have the time, if Nott is available, he should come as well"

Hermione nodded "Yes, Headmistress, I can see you later"

That pleased McGonagall, a ghost of a smile on her face. She nodded. "I'll see you then. Don't let me keep you"

And with that, Hermione walked forward once more for her next class

* * *

After an earful and a half from the Charms professor for once again putting his foot in his mouth, and with a lot more homework than was humanly possible, he was finally allowed to leave. Draco was still grumbling under his breath about vertically challenged, annoying, unfair Charms professors, when he reached his friends, who had stood behind and were waiting for him outside the classroom.

Theo and Blaise were deep in conversation. Theo had one side pressed onto the wall next to him, arms crossed against his chest, while Blaise was waving his arms in the air, most likely trying to explain something through hand gestures. Or maybe he was having a seizure. Draco could never tell with Blaise's overly theatrical hand gestures. Students who passed the two gave them a wide berth – comes with the territory of being big, bad Slytherins—yet some girls could not resist the urge to linger a little too long, staring longer than was polite. Neither boy noticed, of course.

Upon seeing Draco, Theo pushed himself off the wall "I heard you made Granger cry today in Muggle Studies" His features had arranged themselves into a frown.

Draco snorted, "She would never give me the satisfaction of making her cry" and, seeing that Theo was not about to back down, continued, "I just ruffled her feathers, is all, as usual. What's it to you anyway?"

The other boy raised an eyebrow at him, "A Head Girl on-edge makes my life as Head Boy considerably harder, and if that's the case, I will do everything in my power to make _your_ life as my deputy almost unbearable"

"I could always quit. I didn't ask to be deputy, anyway" Draco countered.

"And risk the terms of your probation getting worse? Not likely, Draco" Theo said matter-of-factly, his expression never wavering from its usual calm. He was in complete control of the situation, of course.

Draco was going to retort again when they were distracted by the sound of angry stomping coming in from the hall to their general direction.

"Malfoy!" There was an evil glint in her eyes. Okay, so he might have ruffled her a little _too_ much that day. She grinned dangerously "I need to talk to you"

He backed away at her scary expression, cursed at his show of vulnerability, and so stepped up again, "Why, in need of more emotional scarring?"

"No," She mirrored Theo's earlier stance, hands crossed at her chest "I'm here as Head Girl. I just finished a meeting with the headmistress, and she has asked me to add a few revisions to the existing rounds schedule," she looked over him to Theo "I'm sorry, Nott, you were in class"

Draco's head whipped back to Theo, but the other boy just nodded imperceptibly at Granger. He had no idea what she was talking about, and neither did Draco. "So? What's it to me?" he asked, turning his focus back on the livid witch in front of him.

"Well, due to the horrid behavior you so graciously displayed in Professor Burbage's class today, causing a commotion and all that, I naturally thought of you" She shoved a new rounds schedule in his hands "Enjoy your extra rounds, Malfoy"

Draco glanced down at the schedule, his eyes widening "Hey, it says here that I am to do rounds on two extra Saturdays with—and he cursed considerably –Cornelia Babbage!" Oh the horror. Babbage was an extremely annoying Hufflepuff prefect who fancied herself a big fan of Draco. Her constant cooing, googly eyes, and incessant gushing over his 'beautiful grey eyes' and 'delicious body' during their rounds were enough to drive him insane. She had also once tried to feed him chocolates laced with about three love potions, which would have probably killed him. He didn't mind fans, but he was afraid of _rabid_ fans that could literally chew his ear off or possibly maim him in the name of love. "That woman is worse than even Pansy was!"

"Then I advise you bring body armour," Granger smirked, turning on her heels and walking away "I overheard Babbage saying something along the lines of _jumping your bones_. Good day, boys. I'll see you later, Nott"

Theo made a small wave at Granger before looking back at Draco. He looked to be on the verge of laughing. Blaise was positively beaming at his discomfort, having walked closer to stand by Theo's side, taking in the events that had just unfolded in front of them.

"Well, that serves you right, I suppose" Theo finally piped up, sounding extremely amused.

"Bloody stupid mudblood and her bloody stupid rounds! She can't do this, can she?" he waved the schedule in the Head Boy's face.

"She must really hate you if she's willing to _sic_ Babbage on you" Blaise said, his resolve losing out to amusement as he let out a laugh. Draco shot him a dark look, which the other boy largely ignored in his amusement "As your friend, I advise you not to eat anything she feeds you. If she forces it down your throat though, I can't help you. That girl does have quite the burly arms"

Blaise laughed again. Draco shuddered at the thought of having love potions shoved down his throat.

"Well, Theo? Can she?" Draco returned his gaze to the head boy.

"Yes, she _is_ in charge of the schedules, after all" Theo started walking, Blaise and Draco followed him. "But even if she wasn't, I wouldn't be inclined to change my mind either, since you _were_ a complete and utter _arse._ I _could_ also let you know how it would do wonders for you in the eyes of the headmistress, but I'd be lying if I said that was the reason I'm letting this slide"

Draco scowled "Git"

"Yeah, well," Theo shrugged "what else is new?"

Draco scowled but didn't talk again. He glared daggers at the floor instead. _The nerve of that woman,_ he thought in rage. He was going to get her back for that. He was going to get her back _good_.

* * *

 **Hi Hi! So, just a little oversight. I love context, so there's gonna be quite a few setup chapters before the story gets moving. Just letting you know now. Tee hee. When I first came up with the concept, it started at the middle, so I am working backwards. Anyways, let me know what you think - Asha**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hermione and the Big, Bad Slytherins**

So far, Hermione's 7th Year has not gone according to plan, leaving her dejected, bored, and lonely. After walking in on a guys-night with the three boys in Hogwarts one would've thought she would never be caught drinking with, she does something so very...unHermione-like, she asks to be part of their "boyband".

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2: Tension**

Hermione sat alone at breakfast, which has been the usual for her since her return to Hogwarts. She sighed, scribbling down last-minute edits on her Ancient Runes homework. Regardless of what Malfoy had said to her, she was positive she still knew how to do school better than anyone.

Still, his words the other day had hurt, the jabs landing in deeper than she found comfortable. It was bad enough that he had called her out on her mistake publicly, but then he had proceeded to tell her how she had little else to offer except her brains, and how she couldn't even do that right anymore. Every word was like a little stab at Hermione's low enough self-esteem. The words may have been insignificant to the boy, but it made Hermione feel small inside. Gave her so much insecurity that maybe, even with all her accomplishments, she was not worth much outside her smarts. Of course she had then retaliated by dumping him with all the extra rounds. Hermione smiled a little, remembering the git's face, especially when she may or may not have deliberately paired all his shifts with Cornelia Babbage, his budding superfan and sociopath. But then it had only made her feel worse, now that she knew she could abuse her position when given the opportunity.

To her right, Lavender and Parvati were deep in conversation. Gossip, most likely. Her gaze lingered on them, on how blasé they always seemed, before willing herself to look away. Though she would never care to admit it, it had crossed her mind once or twice how much easier her life would be had she been more like them. A bit more focused on her looks, a bit more sociable, a little less…bookish. But that has never been who she was.

Hermione still could not figure out if that was an advantage or not. Sure, it was this very quirk that Harry and Ron found unique in her in the first place, making her the third part of the trio. It was what drove her all these years to perform better and be there for her friends when it truly counted. It was what was going to get her a great career and a bright future. But, at that moment, it was also precisely why she was sitting at breakfast by herself, day after day, wallowing in her own self-pity.

She physically gave herself a slap on the temple. _Snap out of it, Hermione!_ She all but screamed, and speared her fork into her eggs a little too forcefully. She could barely register the taste of what she was eating.

"Hey, Hermione" Hermione snapped up from her descent into lunacy just in time to see a familiar shade of red make its way next to her. Wrong Weasley, but welcome all the same. Ginny raised an eyebrow at Hermione, obviously witnessing her little battle with herself "Are you okay? You slapped yourself"

"Hi Ginny," Hermione greeted a little too enthusiastically, moving some of her things around to give the redhead some space to eat "Just a calming exercise I do before tests" Hermione lied. It sounded so pathetic to her ears she wanted to laugh for the hell of it.

"Oh, right," was all Ginny's reply. No one questioned Hermione's studying methods, no matter how pathetic.

"Yeah. What's up?" She said, trying to change the subject.

Ginny gave her a look, something of a mixture of empathy, curiosity, and pity "I heard Malfoy made you cry"

Hermione snorted, "I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of that"

"I knew it" Ginny scowled "Those damn Slytherins. Why they're always out for blood when it comes to you, I'll never understand"

"Oh you know why," Hermione replied easily. She couldn't care less though.

"Well, what would you like to do about it? I can help you in any way I can" And the redhead smirked "I could give Malfoy a few choice hexes if you want, enough maim him for a couple of days"

"As Head Girl, I'm going to forget you said that, but thank you" Hermione gave Ginny a small smile before sighing, "Nothing. I just want to put my head down, finish school, and retake the life I left in London to be here, that's all"

"So I take it my brother still hasn't been in contact with you then?" Ginny prodded on.

"No" Hermione heard herself say even before she made the decision to say the truth out loud "Not since platform 9 ¾ when I asked for the break"

"He'll come around," Ginny said, patting Hermione's on the shoulder. Though they were not in-the-running in-laws anymore, the redhead would always feel like family. "You can always _grovel_ when you get back"

Both girls shared a laugh at Hermione's expense. _That's unlikely,_ she thought. No, she would never resort to groveling.

At that moment, a tawny owl flew in from the open windows of the great hall, making its way directly to them. She recognized it immediately as Tuscany, an owl used by Harry to send Ginny letters. This time though, it dropped the letter into Hermione's hands. Hermione hastily took some treats she always kept in her bag and fed it to the bird. It cooed in satisfaction before flying off.

Hermione examined the letter in her hands and a smile escaped her lips "Speak of the devil"

Ginny watched with mild interest as Hermione ripped the envelope open and unfolded the parchment within, hungrily reading down her first letter from Ron since she had started at Hogwarts two months ago.

When she reached the end of the letter, she let it fall to the table. Her face must have gone pale because Ginny's look of interest had become that of worry. "Hermione, what—

"I—I have to go…" She found herself saying, hastily grabbing back all her papers. No sooner had she walked for the door when a Slytherin third-year walked up to her and deliberately tripped, sending his plate of eggs and beans flying in the air. The majority of it hit Hermione in the face.

The Slytherin table burst into laughter, taunting and sending snide remarks her way before a glare from the Headmistress calmed them down. "Err, sorry" The boy said half-heartedly, running back to join his class with a smile on his face. He stood next to Draco, who was besides himself with laughing. Draco gave the boy a clap on the back.

Hermione blinked for a split second, holding back the tears that were threatening to come, and then she found herself running like mad out of the great hall.

* * *

She leaned her back against the wall, fighting the urge to curl herself into fetal position. She had just missed her first class of the day. To calm down, Hermione forced herself to remember if she has ever missed classes just to mope like an actual teenager. She hasn't.

She was seated on one of the benches in a hidden corridor overlooking the mountains, somewhere on the third floor. Her robes were still a little icky in places where the baked beans had been flung at her, though she had scourgified most of the mess. It was hardly why she was upset though. She would rather have breakfast flung at her every day, than go through what she was going through at that moment. She would endure anything but that.

Her hands clenched down on the piece of parchment she received that morning. Upon closer inspection, she noted that she had unknowingly crumpled it into a ball. She supposed that the easy thing to do would be to chuck the letter away and go on pretending as if nothing had happened, compartmentalizing it for later. But Hermione found that she was not the forgetting type, nor the easy type. She was the type that wanted pain to stab her over and over again.

Slowly, she uncoupled the letter and started reading through the unintelligible mess for the umpteenth time that morning, looking for something, anything, in the text that could tell her that this wasn't real. That it was just a prank to get back at her for breaking it off with him.

She wrinkled her nose at herself in disgust, hating that, in addition to now being a masochist, she had also become a soppy, pathetic, wreck.

 _Dear Hermione,_

 _I'm sorry I've kept you in the dark all this time, but you can't deny that you've also hurt me the way you left things._

 _I don't know how to put the next words I'm about to write more eloquently, so I won't. You deserve a straight explanation._

 _I found someone. Her name is Rachel. She's a classmate here in the training academy. In my gut, I know that the right thing to do would have been to to wait for you dutifully till you got back, and give us another chance to figure things out. But, then she came._

 _She blew my mind, Hermione, like you did, once. I don't know if it's love yet, but I'm willing to find out. I know it's unfair to you, because you're there for your future. Maybe you even thought our future. But that's why I'm coming clean now, while it's still early, so we'll have time to pick up the pieces later._

 _Harry doesn't know anything, but I'm planning to let him know once Tuscany comes back from her trip there._

 _I never meant to hurt you, Mione, and I'm hoping against hope that some way, somehow, our friendship survives this._

 _I'll always be here for you. I love you._

 _Love,_

 _Ron._

Hermione felt hot, salty tears fall freely from her eyes, felt her chest clench painfully and restrict her breathing. She clutched it in pain. She was gasping through the sobs, unable to breath. The words felt like physical pain, like someone was actually grasping her neck, cutting off her circulation. Her hands were wringing the piece of parchment so tightly than when she finally registered it, it had been torn into pieces. She opened her hand and threw the pieces to the wind.

After much difficulty, she finally came up for air, grateful for the rush of life down her lungs.

The sad thing, she knew, was that it wasn't just Ron. It wasn't just about the fact that he had finally dumped after two months of silence with a sense of finality. She had known as much, after how she left him first. It wasn't so much a complete one-eighty as it was a final slap to the face.

What hurt more was the realisation that the small shred of hope she held was now gone. Though she would be hard-pressed to go through with it, Hermione had conjured up this notion that, should the loneliness be too much to bear, she could always go back to London with her friend and lover and be done with it. It was an excuse she held like a talisman whenever things got bad at Hogwarts. When the loneliness, coupled with her ability to overwork herself into exhaustion, was too much, when the jokes and jabs went too far now that she had no backup. With Ron's letter not only came the finality of her longest relationship, but also the understanding that no matter how much Hogwarts sucked without Ron and Harry, she now had no reason or excuse to leave.

She was still sobbing, but she had relatively calmed. The painful clench was, for the most part, gone. She roughly wiped her tears against the back of her robe.

Hermione had made up her mind. She would wait a day and then make her way to the owlery. She would send Ron a letter with her blessing in a calm, even happy tone for him, maybe even imply that she had moved on and he had nothing to worry about, no guilt to feel.

And then, when she was done, she was going to get herself hilariously and completely _drunk_.

She had just finished this decision when she was startled by a male voice, who had spoken up from somewhere to her left "Granger?"

Hastily wiping back more of her tears, she looked up to see piercing, steely blue eyes staring back at her, concerned. "Nott" She answered shakily, wishing on Godric Gryffindor that he didn't see her complete break down "What are you doing here?"

He shuffled his feet slightly, "I was going to talk to you about the new developments I met with the headmistress about for the spring dance, but it could wait—

"No, no, I'm fine, wait let me just get my—and she reached for her bag. She felt a hand steady hers and tug her away.

Nott sat down next to her "It can wait" He was assessing her closely, his gaze darting from her face, to her puffy eyes, to her robes. If she didn't know better, she'd have thought he was trying to read her mind. In their world it was a definite possibility. "Did you let Draco get to you?"

She could feel her face getting hotter. His gaze was intense, smouldering "No," she looked away "No, umm, that's fine, I'm used to his constant plans to vex me"

He reached into her hair and flicked a bean she had missed to the floor "If there's any consolation, I gave Devereaux enough detention to last him his entire term here at Hogwarts, for wasting food resources, and _littering_ "

Hermione chuckled drily. She glanced at Nott and saw that he was still staring at her intently, gauging her reactions "We make such a petty Head Boy and Girl"

He shrugged "Might as well use this little power we've been given to our advantage, right? I mean, I'm in Slytherin so it comes with the territory," He smirked "You though—

"I just hate Malfoy's guts" She replied back, smiling back at the memory of Malfoy's face. Apparently satisfied with the improvement in her mood, Nott got up to leave.

"Anyway, we can talk more today," He said in his usual velvety drawl, "Or, should you need a day, tomorrow"

She mumbled a thank you at him. He glanced back at her over his shoulders and gave her a nod.

Then, he was gone.

Hermione watched him go. For reasons unknown, she had never given the boy much thought before. She wondered why that was, since he was, of course, gorgeous. He had tousled black hair that never gave off the impression of being messy. He had sharp cheekbones, an even sharper nose, and what she could tell was a taut body underneath his robes. His best features though, were his eyes. Even if they were steely blue, they were warm. Smouldering even. Warm enough for anyone to melt under his gaze. She blushed, remembering just how she had melted under his gaze a few minutes ago. Then it dawned on her that she had just been over-thinking, of all people, a _Slytherin_.

 _Merlin Hermione! I know you're vulnerable right now, but have you no shame? He's in Slytherin and Head Boy,_ She through in annoyance, giving herself another slap to the temple.

* * *

Draco peered over to the Gryffindor Table, where his archenemy sat alone in the corner. She had returned for lunchtime, now squeaky clean, ignoring all the little taunts and teases his own house had started throwing at her. She had her nose down a book. The bloody girl always had her nose down a book. She was absently playing with a lock of hair that had fallen from its place, twirling and un-twirling it on her pointer finger. Draco noted to himself how she had jabbed that finger into his chest a little too many times over the years during many of their arguments. He scowled. The woman really had a way of riling him up.

"Interesting choice of scenery," He gazed away quickly, turning his head to look at the beautiful Slytherin sixth year now also staring at the object of his scrutiny. His cheeks colored.

"Astoria," He said drily, rolling his eyes when she sat next to him "What, are you checking up on who I look at now?"

Astoria Greengrass scoffed "Oh Draco, you know I like you, that's something I've never hidden, but I don't like you _that_ much" She gathered her luscious brown locks into a ponytail and bit into an apple "I was just making an observation, so?" And she gestured back to the Gryffindor brunette who had no idea such conversation about her was taking place.

"So, what?" He replied, but he didn't look there again "I was just plotting her demise, as per usual"

"Of course you were," she said, taking another bite at her apple.

"What else could I be doing, Astoria?" He countered, "That wench just ensured I would never have free time again"

"Which she did in retaliation for you making her cry, or at least that's what everyone's saying" She smirked, having a little too much fun pushing Draco's buttons. He scowled. "It's all such playground drama—and didn't you already exact your petty little revenge by dropping breakfast on her this morning?"

"Your point being?" He rolled his eyes, petty indeed. "Why are we talking about Granger?"

"I don't know," She discarded the apple and made to get up, but not before giving Draco an all-knowing smirk "Why _are_ we? See you around, Draco"

Draco scowled into his mashed potatoes, and pushed them away. What Astoria had just implied made him lose his appetite. He sauntered out of the room, but not before noticing that the girl assaulting him with her presence had tucked back the lock she was playing with behind her ear.

 **Ooh Tension. Haha. Lots of Tension. This was two smaller chapters I decided made more sense together. Hope you're enjoying so far! - Asha**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hermione and the Big, Bad Slytherins**

So far, Hermione's 7th Year has not gone according to plan, leaving her dejected, bored, and lonely. After walking in on a guys-night with the three boys in Hogwarts one would've thought she would never be caught drinking with, she does something so very...unHermione-like, she asks to be part of their "boyband".

* * *

 **CHAPTER 3: Sweets & Bird Droppings**

It was finally time again for the last class of the week, which to the indignation of many seventh years, was a Slytherin-Gryffindor double helping of Potions under Professor Slughorn. Being that it was now November, there was a bitter chill in the air around the dungeons classroom, and students silently rubbed their hands to keep warm, trying their mightiest to keep up with the professor's usual monologues. There was a fire going, but it barely helped.

Draco was bored, half of the time staring blankly at his notes on Wolfsbane and their magical purposes, which he could care less about at the moment, and the other half regarding his walrus-like professor, wondering when the man's pomposity would eventually be too big for the room he was in, and cause him to finally explode, leaving small chunks of Slughorn on the walls and plastered on the bottles of pickled animals. This rather gruesome mental image quite amused Draco, so he focused on that for a few minutes, imagining his classmates sweeping the chunks off the wall.

"What in Merlin's name are you smirking about?" _Blaise._

Draco smirked, imagining Blaise's haughty face as he wiped Slughorn chunks from the bottles. "Nothing _…_ "

"Mate, turn it down a notch. You look a little demented" Blaise rolled his eyes. Draco shrugged, fixing his gaze back on his paper on Wolfsbane.

"Ms. Granger?" the voice of the professor uttering his least favorite person in the world snapped Draco out of his current, gruesome, train of thought as he pointed his view to her direction.

"Aconite, professor," She answered.

"Perfect, as usual, Miss Granger," Slughorn beamed, to Draco's further annoyance "Very good"

Draco heard himself snort a little too loudly.

"Oh did you have something to add to the class, Mr. Malfoy?" Slughorn said, shaking his portly head in disappointment. Draco noted that Granger had also turned back to look at him "Fine, one more question for you then, who first brewed Wolfsbane and for what purpose?" The professor was obviously banking on his embarrassment, but Draco knew better.

"Damocles, and its purpose to relieve the effects of Lycanthropy, sir," He answered, noting that that was _two_ questions.

Slughorn blinked. So did Granger. "Err, very good Mr. Malfoy, now _do_ try to keep noise at a minimum next time"

"Wicked, how'd you know that?" Blaise started, once the professor was out of earshot.

It was Fenrir Greyback in sixth year during one of their uneasy conversations. The insane death-eater had once implied how he would've liked to take a bite out of that sodding Damocles fellow for putting werewolves in chains using that damn potion. Draco shuddered, looking away from Blaise, trying to forget that that sodding piece of human scum was still alive and kicking, "Oh, just my notes"

"Right…" Blaise trailed off. After a moment he started again, "You know, Theo was right…"

Draco glanced back "About?"

" _You_ , being way to intent on _her,"_ And by her, of course, Blaise meant Granger, "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"No," He replied hotly "And I am _not_ "

Blaise snorted "Your head shot up so fast at the sound of her name I thought you'd decapitated it"

One would've thought a boy as haughty as Blaise Zabini would be a little less… _animated_ with such silly trivialities, but that was not the case, not to the people who knew him. If there was one thing that boy loved, it was pushing buttons.

The Italian boy raised an eyebrow when Draco didn't say anything "Come off it, I'm your _friend_ , just tell me"

"Since when did we become teenage girls exchanging gossip over Witch Weekly?"

"Just answer the question" Blaise pursued, "Fine, if you don't tell me then—and he smirked at Draco—I'll just assume the _worst_ "

Draco scowled "I _have_ answered you!"

Slughorn cleared his throat a little too loudly "Mr. Malfoy, dial it down, _please_ , final warning"

Draco sneered but otherwise kept quiet, turning his view away from Blaise. When the professor was once again out of earshot, the boy he was avoiding shuffled closer once more. He was laughing, the git. "Sorry about that, I should have let you in on it before"

Against his better judgment, Draco looked back once again, his eyes shooting darts at his _friend_ "What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

"Muffliato charm, _Drakey_ ," And the boy just laughed some more.

* * *

Hermione went straight for the Owlery after her Potions class, a letter tucked in between her Potions book. The letter got her full attention that night in Slughorn's class, drowning out the professor's monologue on Wolfsbane. She supposed she already knew enough about it from her experience in third year with Professor Lupin.

" _Ms. Granger?" Hermione's head shot up at the sound of her name. He was asking her a question. She frowned. The last thing she could remember the professor talking about was the properties of Wolfsbane._

" _Err—Aconite, professor" she answered a little gingerly._

" _Perfect, as usual, Miss Granger," Slughorn beamed at her, "Very good"_

She had to admit, that answer came straight out of her _arse_.

Then Malfoy had made another of his wimpy sounds, but he was shot down so she didn't put much heed into it. It did quite _impress_ her though, how he answered the professor's questions with ease. She supposed there was a brain somewhere underneath all that boy's pomp.

She took one of the school owls and tied the letter to its leg. "Please send this to Ronald Weasley," she said quietly, giving the owl a few treats.

The owl hooted, took her treats, then left. She sighed. That had been the hardest text work Hermione has ever had to write. She took up a good amount of time just staring at the damn piece of parchment, willing her brain to conjure up words.

 _Dear Ron,_

 _I completely understand that you're a git who can't_ _– Hermione scoffed at her bitterness, crumpling up the parchment in her hands._

 _I know that it was my fault, and I still love you_ _– Hermione frowned. No, no talk of love. She bit her lip as she bitterly remembered the earlier description of herself as a soppy, pathetic, wreck._

 _Gritting her teeth, she went through a few more revisions until she finally hit that sweet spot between happy, indifferent, and friendly._

Now it would get to Ron, and he could finally be happy. She would be too, somehow.

She let a few stray tears escape her eyes before finally leaving the Owlery, deciding to linger at the Gryffindor common room for the part two of her two-part plan – getting hopelessly drunk. She turned and found herself crashing into the taut chest of another person. He grabbed her arms before she could fall onto the floor. For that, she was grateful, eyeing the infinite amount of bird droppings on the owlery's floor.

"Are you okay, 'ermione?" It was Seamus. He helped her back up. "Sorry"

She smiled for him and shook her head, "No it's my fault, I'm fine. Sorry, I didn't see you come in"

The Irish boy shrugged and ran a hand through his hair "It's no problem"

Hermione looked down to the letter Seamus had in his hand "Well, I better leave you to it then"

He looked down, as if just now remembering why he was there "Oh yeah, it's for me 'mam. I'll just be awhile" He walked around her "I'll see you at the common room, yeah? Dean is throwing a weekend birthday bash thing for Parvati"

Hermione turned back and gave him another smile, pleased to know there would be drinks that night "I wouldn't miss it. I'll see you, Seamus"

"Bye then" Seamus said, and for another while he had forgotten once again why he was in the owlery. He smiled to himself, pleased at finally having a conversation with Hermione Granger.

* * *

"Mr. Malfoy, a word…" The professor said quietly. The other students had already left the classroom, leaving him and Blaise. Draco looked back, nodded at Blaise, and walked to the front of the dungeons classroom.

"Yes, professor?" He asked, putting on an innocent look, something he has had to perfect when speaking with the portly walrus of a professor.

"I've been getting… _stirrings_ …of you bullying a particular Head Girl" the professor frowned "Something involving breakfast a few days ago. Draco, if I didn't know better, I would think you were _asking_ to be expelled"

Draco almost scowled, thought against it, feigned a cough, and kept up with the look of innocence that he knew didn't match his haughty features very well "Why, whatever do you mean, sir? That was _Devereaux_ , and had little to do with me"

"Regardless, I would expect you to be a little nicer to her, especially these next couple of weeks after that" Slughorn took hold of a small case that held his favorite crystallized pineapples "Maybe give her a smile, or some sweets, once in a while, could you do that?"

Draco sneered at the thought of him giving Granger any sweets "Yes, sir" he answered through gritted teeth. Seemingly satisfied with his reply, Slughorn waved him away, all the while eyeing his favorite treats a little too greedily.

Draco scowled, walking back to Blaise.

"What happened in there, then?"

"Oh nothing" Draco replied icily "Professor Slughorn just asked me to get Granger _sweets_ " When Blaise examined Draco's face and found that _that_ had been no joke, his head roared back in laughter, turning Draco a very unflattering shade of puce.

* * *

 **(Right Now)**

Draco settled into the couch in Theo's private office. All the prefects had gone for the night, and the Head Girl was, well her couldn't care less. They were alone. He and Blaise had decided not to stay in the common room that night to drink as it was packed. So, as they have done a couple of times before, they decided to take the drinking to Theo, who was usually too busy to make time for the common room.

Theo didn't seem to mind.

"So I was saying," Blaise continued, unaware that Draco's mind had wandered off "Why is it _my_ fault?"

"Hmm?" Draco reached for his cup and took a swig of the Firewhiskey they had brought. He grimaced a bit, but otherwise drank with no problem.

Blaise scowled "Oh come on, don't tell me you didn't get all that. Where'd your mind go? _Granger_?" That snapped Draco out of his reverie.

"What in Merlin's name are you on about? Why does everyone keep blabbering to me about Granger?" He shot up in exasperation. Unbeknownst to him, Theo's head has gone up from what he was reading as well, as he gauged Draco's reaction.

Blaise snorted, "Calm down, mate, you're not exactly helping matters" Draco shot him a dark look.

"Just continue on with your story" he waved Blaise away, massaging his temples in annoyance.

* * *

Hermione muttered an obscene amount of profanities under her breath, enough to make the Fat Lady blush. Call it a little too much time hanging out with Ron and his siblings.

 _I will never drink with that git again, the nerve of him,_ she thought vehemently, stomping her way out the Gryffindor common room. Scowling, she realized that the news would probably be all over Hogwarts the next day, meaning that she would be _kissing_ her moment of peace and solitude, however unwanted, goodbye. She frowned at the unintended pun.

Suddenly, Hermione stopped, her eyebrows scrunched. She just realized that she had nowhere to go now.

 _For bloody sure I am_ _not_ _going back to the common room_ , she thought. Finally she decided to make her way to the Heads office, she might as well spend her last night of peace buried in work as Head Girl.

Hermione opened the door to the Heads' office, still shaking a little in anger. The office was a long space, with a common seating area in the middle specked with desks and lounges, and two offices on either side: one for her, one for Theo. They usually stayed up until very late at night, so she was sure there was a chance the Head Boy would still be in.

Since their little _moment_ at the third floor corridor, Hermione realized, she was never able to talk to the Head Boy regarding the spring dance, which was their new joint project and was coming up fast. Tonight was as good a night as any.

She walked to his door.

* * *

"How was I supposed to know that _that_ monstrous excuse of a boy was her _boyfriend_?" Blaise said accusingly " _She_ came to _me_ , asking for my services to scratch an itch _he_ couldn't reach, and I obliged… now it's my fault?"

Draco was slack-jawed "Well, yes…"

"Seriously?" Blaise looked wounded.

"Let's face it, Blaise" and Draco felt a smirk coming on "You _are_ a bit of a _slut"_

The look of shock on Blaise's face was pure gold. Draco's bellow of laughter emanated within the office. The other boy glared at him, livid. But before either of them could continue, there was a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" called Theo, gesturing for them to hide the drinks, which they followed.

"Hi Nott, it's Granger" Draco's eyes widened. He turned to Blaise and saw that their expressions were pretty much the same. Of all the people to come knocking, it just _had_ to be self-righteous, all-around insufferable, Gryffindor, –

"Come in" Theo said, never once leaving his desk. Draco glared at him, willing Theo to do something, _anything_ really, before they were caught. But it was too late, because mere seconds after Theo asked her to come in, she was in. First, she saw Theo, then, almost comically slow, her eyes turned to the two boys sitting frozen on Theo's couch.

 _I'm going to get expelled,_ Draco thought glumly, wondering if he would be able obliviate the witch without blowing her head off first. He supposed he _could_ just blow her head off. He put his hand in his pocket, reaching for his wand. If she ran, he would hex her and have fun doing it.

"Err—She hesitated.

"Hello, Granger" Theo smiled genially, walking over to the female and closing the door behind her. Draco noted that Theo had also shielded her from their view. Git. "Fancy having a drink with us?"

And, what had got to be the biggest surprise of the evening, Draco saw Granger open her mouth, close it, frown, and after a few seconds, finally decided on "Yes, I would love to"

* * *

 **Whew, this was a hard chapter. I'm running a fine line between believable and interesting. I had to write this about four times. Sigh. Just a filler, but I wanted it to be as natural a progression as possible.**

 **Anyways, hope you like this chapter! - Asha**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hermione and the Big, Bad Slytherins**

So far, Hermione's 7th Year has not gone according to plan, leaving her dejected, bored, and lonely. After walking in on a guys-night with the three boys in Hogwarts she would usually never be caught dead drinking with, she does something so very unHermione-like, she asks to be part of their "boyband".

* * *

 **CHAPTER 4: Firewhiskey**

Hermione gingerly stepped into Theo's office, suddenly very subconscious that not one, but _three_ , Slytherin pairs of eyes were staring at her: one in shock, one in indignation, and one, well, Theo's eyes never showed much emotion, except maybe to burn a hole into her head with their level of intensity, now that she thought about it.

She followed him across the room to the chair he had pulled out for her. She could feel that she was blushing, but it was most likely just the butterbeer she had drunk back at the common room, as well as the fact that she had just agreed to drink with three Slytherins. _Three Slytherin boys!_ One particular Slytherin being her biggest tormentor, a boy who hated her with a passion she could never begin or care to understand. Oh, and she may have a little crush on the other. She should just run now.

She had only just sat down on the chair across from Theo's desk when the tirade began, all of it coming from that _one_ particular Slytherin.

"What in Salazar's name do you think you're doing, Theo?" Draco snapped up in rage. He had gotten off the couch, his enraged face now within inches of Theo's, "Why is _she_ here?"

Theo shrugged "After how _you_ 've been treating our Head Girl since the start of the school year, I think the least we could do is—and Nott smirked, "Offer her a drink"

Draco growled so ferociously that Hermione considered briefly whether or not she was in any physical danger. She supposed he would be angry. After all, he didn't like her very much. Well, she didn't like him very much either. She snorted in Draco Malfoy's particular direction but no one paid any heed to her.

In all honesty, she didn't know why she had agreed to have a drink with them in the first place. She had just been so emotional about Ron, distressed at the events that had plagued her earlier in the common room, and then glum upon the realization that she would be working on a _Friday_ night. _Again._

Mind you, she did have half a mind to report this little infraction to the headmistress, but then that would have meant that Theodore Nott be stripped of his title as Head Boy, which she realized was _not_ something she wanted.

She flushed a little at her apparent lack of moral code, chewing on her bottom lip.

 _Well, I would not be able to get another drink either, and Merlin knows I need it!_ So she stayed.

Looking up at Draco's enraged face, and remembering that she was currently outnumbered against a pit of snakes, she felt her pockets for her wand and held onto it.

"Then I'm leaving, I don't want to be here drinking with that-that _harpy_!" the blond boy huffed, making for the door. Hermione winced; that wasn't fair. She's been nothing but quiet this whole time. Her lip jutted out slightly into an indignant pout. She was _not_ a harpy.

"You'll do no such thing," Theo replied. Hermione noted that for all of Draco's dirty looks and raised voice, Theo seemed unfazed.

Blaise Zabini, the third Slytherin, was grinning for reasons Hermione couldn't even begin to comprehend. He leaned back lazily on the couch in absolute amusement, his drink back in his hand. The boys' dynamic reminded her so strongly of a muggle TV show she had once watched during the holidays.

"I-I can just go," She said quietly but Theo shot that down with a dismissive wave. Draco didn't even glance at her. She glared at the pair of them.

"What makes you think that?" Draco snapped.

Theo smirked "Oh I don't know, Draco, didn't Professor Slughorn ask you to get Granger some _sweets?_ "

 _Sweets?_

Before she could catch herself, she found herself chuckling, quietly at first, before it bubbled out into hacking fits of laughter. All three boys stared back in her direction, eyes wide in surprise. She clutched her side.

Theo turned to her for the first time since she sat down, and so did Draco. Draco's face had turned an unflattering shade of purple.

"Find something amusing, _Granger_?" he asked her, his voice dripping with venom. She didn't care. It was for the better anyway, now he wasn't shouting anymore.

Hermione chuckled at Draco's livid face, amused, confused, and on the whole, extremely weirded out at the whole ridiculous situation. "I-I don't know, just w-why h-h-has a professor aske-d-d-d you to get me-me – _sweets_?" She keeled over.

"Anyway" Theo continued, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips with the Head Girl's uninhibited laughter, "I'm helping you out, mate. Now stay, relax, have a drink, and while we don't have sweets at hand, at least we can offer Granger a cup of Firewhiskey" Hermione saw him blink, give Theo one last sneer, and then sit back down on the couch in indignation.

"If she rats us out tomorrow," Draco said darkly, having also retrieved his drink "I hold you fully accountable, Theo"

Theo smiled, making his way back to Hermione. She was still giggling uncontrollably, but she finally managed to at least get back to sitting position. Theo conjured up a cup, filled it with Firewhiskey, and handed it to her "Here, courtesy of Draco Malfoy"

Hermione giggled again, wholeheartedly accepting the drink "Thank you to Draco _ferrety_ Malfoy then,"

From his place on the couch, Draco gave her a particularly nasty scowl, which she returned with a satisfied, smug smirk. He turned his head away first from her, putting his attention back on the handsome, dark skinned Slytherin beside him. Well, more like he started sneering pointedly at Blaise while the other boy regaled him tales of sexual conquests past. Hermione looked back at Theo, and smiled, "I'll just get this one then I'll be out of your hair"

Theo shook his head, taking a gulp of his own drink, "Merlin knows you need a drink, Hermione. Don't worry about them"— and he gestured to the two boys on his couch, who had proceeded to continue on a conversation they must have started when she wasn't there, something about an _itch_ that needed to be _scratched…_ she wrinkled her nose.

No, definitely not a conversation she wanted to be part in.

"Slytherins bark a lot harder than they bite, most of the time, even more _now_ ," Theo continued "You're perfectly safe. You can _even_ let go of that wand you got clutching under your robes"

Hermione flushed, and let go of her wand. She chanced a small glance at the Head Boy, who, with bored elegance, put his cup to his lips, taking a small swig. He was watching Malfoy and Zabini intently, a smirk playing on his lips as they further discussed that itch that needed scratching.

He looked like a bored Adonis.

Hermione could feel her cheeks heat up even more. She had also just barely registered that he had referred to her as _Hermione_ , making her stomach fill with unwanted butterflies. For something to do, she took a big swig at her glass, downing the contents in one gulp. It burned going down, making her grimace a little, but she willed herself to get adjusted to the sensation.

She looked up to see that this rather alcoholic way of drinking had gotten the attention of the room _again_.

"Merlin, Granger, for all your reputation as Gryffindor's pure, unadultered Princess, you sure could drink down Firewhiskey" It was Blaise's voice who piped up. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the way he had described her as Gryffindor's Princess.

The other boy was just much too amused, in her honest opinion. Like her being there, in the midst of their private drinking session, was one of the most entertaining scenarios he's ever had the pleasure of witnessing. He got up, took her empty glass, refilled it, and then returned it to her "Here…"

She took the glass gingerly, deciding to drink a little slower since the Slytherin boys seemed much too eager to give her more alcohol, "Thanks"

"That's eye-opening though," and the boy turned back to Draco, who was still scowling "Isn't it, mate?"

Draco waved them away in annoyance, looking anywhere except at her.

* * *

Draco stared in annoyance, and to his chagrin, _respect_ , as Granger downed a full cup of Firewhiskey without so much as a ladylike cough.

"Merlin, Granger, for all your reputation as Gryffindor's pure, unadultered Princess, you sure could gulp down Firewhiskey" That was Blaise. Of course Blaise would be impressed. "Here…" he handed her another drink, which she promptly started sipping again. Funny, he thought, he'd never peg her as an able drinker.

Draco chewed on the inside of his cheek, effectively stopping him from blurting out not to get the Head Girl blind drunk. Why he cared, he didn't know. So he bit his cheek.

"Thanks" she said quietly. A creeping blush was rising from the base of her neck. She was so painfully aware of how three pairs of Slytherin eyes were on her. Without wanting to, Draco roamed his eyes along the form of the Gryffindor Princess. She absently tucked back a loose curl, drinking gingerly.

"That's eye-opening though," and the boy turned back to him with a knowing smile. He scowled in response, "Isn't it, mate?"

Draco pointedly looked away, feigning indifference. The Head Girl's special talent for drinking was no reason to stare.

Blaise clapped him on the back and he looked up at his friend. Blaise smirked again, knowingly, and got back to his seat, downing his own cup of Firewhiskey before clapping his hands together "Alright then, now that everyone has drunk enough,"

At that opening, Theo emptied his cup.

Blaise continued, "Are we just going to drink all night or are we going to make this night a little more interesting?"

Draco scowled as Blaise, who sent a wink his way. He should leave, but for some reason, he didn't. He should, but he wasn't even considering it. _Granger_ should be the one leaving. He glanced over at Blaise, who raised his glass to him. Draco rolled his eyes. He really should just leave, because now he was under scrutiny of the extremely annoying and persuasive Blaise Zabini, but, again, he knew he wouldn't.

Draco wanted to damn himself to hell.

* * *

Hermione's hand instinctively went to her wand as Blaise reached the full length of his arm to the back of the couch. Yes, she needed a drink, but that didn't mean she wasn't still on-edge about who she was drinking with. After Blaise mentioned that he was in the mood to play a game, her back shot up so fast it cricked. They were going to do something to her. She frowned. No, they wouldn't try doing anything stupid in the Heads Office, right? She chanced a look at Theo, who gave her a small smile. It calmed her down a bit, but not by much.

Blaise brought out a small, beaten box and opened it. Inside there were four bracelets. He picked two up and gave them to Theo and Draco, who put it on their wrists. Draco's suddenly glowed red, Nott's glowed green. Draco scowled "Great, last again"

Hermione was so busy staring at the two that she didn't notice Blaise give her a similar bracelet "You _are_ joining in, right, Granger?" She stared at it, uncomprehending.

"What is _it_ I'm getting myself into?" She asked quizzically. Against her better judgment, which seemed to have left her since the moment she entered the office, she was again quite curious.

"In muggle terms" Theo said from her side, "I believe you call it _Drink or Dare,_ here we call it Imperio"

Hermione raised an eyebrow but she didn't respond, so Theo continued.

"We play it differently though. Basically each player gets a bracelet, all a different color, for up to a number of twelve people. It will light up your color when you put it on" He took the bracelet from Blaise.

"Green always goes first?" escaped her mouth. It didn't miss her that last place was _red._ Theo smirked.

"Well, you _are_ playing with Slytherins after all" He chuckled a little at her annoyed face, then continued, "Anyway, you turn the bottle and then you can ask anything, or order anything you want to whoever the bottle turns to, within reason. Then that person gets the next turn"

Theo took her hand. She looked down as his smooth hands gently slid the toy bracelet on her wrist. It glowed blue, and she was sure her face must've reached a dizzying shade of red, though she wouldn't be surprised if it was purple.

Theo looked back at Blaise, who had clasped on his bracelet as well, which glowed yellow "Blaise, would you do the honors then?"

Blaise smirked "Right, the rules—

Number one, no dares that would result in any permanent bodily harm, though mental embarrassment and a few cuts and scrapes are welcome.

Number two, and I know this should be hard, seeing as we have a female here today—he winked at Hermione—but no outright nudity for tonight. We wouldn't want to scare off our dear Head Girl on her first night of Imperio. We can go down to our knickers, but _please_ , I don't want to see your _Slytherins_ out and about, thank you very much" Hermione chuckled nervously, but other than that remained silent. Blaise pressed on.

"Number three, if a participant does not want to go through with the consequence given to him or her by the participant in turn, take one drink. You must empty the half shot in your glass in order to advance.

Number four, if a participant does agree to a consequence, it has to be done. That bracelet will stop glowing only after successful completion until the bottle is turned again.

Number four, no one is to leave this game until he or she had completed at least one consequence given, or has drunk.

Number five, should it be required, a participant in turn may give a _future_ consequence of up to two weeks to complete.

And finally, no consequences about having a participant become a slave or any of that nonsense, we're all vain here, well except Saint Granger over there" He gestured to Hermione, who wrinkled her nose at the thought, garnering her a chuckle from the impossibly cheery Blaise Zabini.

"Theo then, would you do the honors?" Blaise finished, handing the Head Boy the bottle.

Hermione bit on her bottom lip. What was she doing? Why was she still there, putting herself in an even more vulnerable situation with the three boys, who, aside from Theo, was re-meeting her for the first time since the end of the war? What if they planned something to shame her even more? She looked down at her bracelet and thanked Merlin she was no lightweight with alcohol. She gingerly looked at the bottle in Theo's hand. He settled it on the table and spun.

 _Fine,_ she decided, _for tonight, Hermione Granger the Nice is on holiday._ _Tonight, I'm having fun._

* * *

Draco had now resorted to glowering at the female. How bloody uptight could she be that she had never played Imperio before? He looked darkly at his _friends_ , both of whom did not seem to find any problem with drinking, _illegally, mind you_ , and now playing Imperio with the Gryffindor Princess.

He supposed he could _actually_ just leave, which he had been silently threatening the whole night, not that anyone knew or cared, but then he'd just be subjected to boredom back in the common room _and_ the never-ending teasing from his _friends._ There was just no winning.

There was no winning at the game either, as no one had been stupid enough to choose dare, not even the headstrong Gryffindor. It amused him how she immediately clutched for her glass as soon as the bottle landed on her, then silently curse herself at her lack of bravery as they goaded her on being a sniveling coward.

She was of course not that, it was obvious to see that she wasn't, but that was how one pushed her to play so they could start the real fun. Only someone stupid would choose dare at a Slytherin Imperio game, though. Not until the alcohol becomes too much.

Draco, to his count, has already drunk four cups. He could feel the buzzing, warm feeling of the alcohol seeping slowly up to his head. This would not last much longer, he would have to take a dare soon.

She spun the bottle, taking another gulp of her glass as she did, and slowly, but surely, it had begun to stop. He knew it would point to him before even before the bottle actually stopped, the nose facing him. With his wretched luck, this was inevitable.

He looked up to meet Granger's chocolate eyes. She was _beaming_ at his displeasure. He scowled. Okay, maybe she had had too much to drink already, but that didn't mean he was unnerved at her totally new expression for him. She was going to get him good. She chuckled.

"Hmm, Malfoy" She teased.

He snorted, "Do your worse, _harpy_ , I'm not expecting much from a Gryffindor"

"I dare you to follow Professor Slughorn's advice and get me some darn _sweets_. I want them promptly at the office door everyday for _two weeks"_ She said sweetly.

Blaise broke out laughing. Theo valiantly held back a snicker, clapping Hermione on the back. The witch looked too pleased in herself. Obviously, she had struck a nerve.

Sneering, he took his cup and gulped its contents down. Okay, so maybe the Gryffindor had that round. Giving her sweets, indeed!

* * *

Hermione must be drunk. She wiped the tears that had started to form in the corners of her eyes from so much laughing, and concentrated on her thoughts. Nope, she thought against her original assessment, _not yet_. She quietly deduced that she still had about three more drinks in her before she was completely plastered, and she wasn't planning on any more drinks, cowering unlike the Gryffindor lioness she was. Next round she would play.

If there had been any other time when in her life when she had acted with such reckless abandon, for reasons other than saving the world, Hermione most certainly could not remember. She was also laughing more now than she had ever done since the school year started.

Theo was right, she was in dire need of a proper drinking session.

Despite what she initially thought, the Slytherin boys were _fun_ , and once they had come to accept that she was not going to rat them out, _and Merlin_ , it took three cups of Firewhiskey to get to that point, they had relaxed considerably. She hadn't even been asked to do anything she didn't want. Probably because she had been the complete opposite of a brave little Gryffindor and gulped down every turn she got, sometimes without even asking what the dare would be first. All three boys scoffed in disdain, muttering ' _some Gryffindor you are'_ and ' _Prude witch'_ under their breaths. She didn't care though, it was entertainment enough to see them bend over backwards trying to complete the incredulous consequences they gave one another, rather than her. Thank Merlin she was an able drinker.

The four of them had an impasse at the beginning when everyone just took the drink directly. It didn't last though. After all, there was a limit as to how much each person could take. Finally, after the fourth round, Draco had finally managed to corner a red-faced Theo into his first dare. The blond Slytherin let out a dangerous smirk, telling Theo to wait outside the Gryffindor common room and snog the first person he sees. After much deliberation, he finally added that _fine,_ it would be for students only.

Now there they were, in more trouble than she thought possible, and for the first time in her life, she did not care. She let out a quiet spell though, something that could warn them if Filch or that mangy cat of his decided to make an entrance. She smiled at her work.

They hid out of sight in anticipation as Theo waited outside with his wand. No movement. She frowned upon reaching the common room, remembering the events earlier that morning, but she let it go. She would deal with it tomorrow, not tonight, not when she was finally letting loose for once.

The Fat Lady opened after fifteen minutes.

Blaise and Draco, who were ahead of her, smirked at each other. Hermione's eyes widened.

 _No way, no, no way, Theo? Head Boy Theo?_

Hermione watched with a mixture of horror and awe as Theo quickly made a blinding curse at her friend. Neville froze. The Head Boy smirked, and used that microsecond of doubt on Neville's face to cup his cheeks. To the extreme snickers of her two companions, Theo planted his lips onto the other boy's, deepening it to a proper snog. Draco, who until that moment had been relatively calm, and the coldest of the bunch, started hacking silent laughs, extremely pleased with himself. Then Theo had run off, waving his wand as he removed the blinding curse, not waiting for Neville's expression. He took Hermione by the hand and didn't dare look back.

"Well, that was… _horrifying_ " she told him, deciding whether to be impressed or horrified. She settled for both. Theo simply smiled.

"I just imagined he was someone else," He answered, his face flushed after all the drinking, "Don't worry Hermione, this isn't the first time I've had to do that under Imperio"

Hermione gulped, and was just about to change her answer to _horrified_ , when he clasped her hand tighter and continued darting off the hallways. He winked back at her. She blushed instead.

* * *

Theo smirked, looking at Draco. Draco scowled.

"Do you know that little number we found in Blaise's mother's closet that one summer, when we were looking for her Firewhiskey stash?" Theo said smugly. Draco snorted.

Blaise, to the surprise of all, started laughing when he remembered, which, in his drunken state, was much _much_ later.

Draco gave them a well-timed glare they chose to ignore. He wondered about his options. He had drunk too much, way too much. He finally nodded.

"Well, transfigure your uniform into _that_ , and act like you're a mermaid in the lake for one minute" Theo said. He caught Hermione's confused eyes and smiled for her. Draco, seeing that little exchange, felt the bile in his throat threaten to come up. He swallowed.

At that, Blaise broke down into a new fit of laughter.

"I-I don't get it" Hermione said in confusion, watching Blaise keel over, going purple, before fixing back her gaze to Draco and Theo.

"You will" Theo whispered, as he watched Draco.

Draco got up, and without warning, started taking off his clothes until he was in nothing but his black, silk boxers. He registered Hermione staring at him, and felt a warm rush come to his cheeks. It didn't matter. He wasn't a coward anymore after seven glasses of Firewhiskey. He took out his wand and in one swoop turned his boxers into the man-thong they had found stashed in Eliza Zabini's bottom drawer. Hermione blushed crimson, her eyes fixed a little too long on the swatch of emerald fabric. Realizing she had been staring, she whipped her head to the side.

Draco smirked, "Like what you see, mudblood?"

Hermione looked back at him with wider eyes. Her hand whipped for her wand, but stopped when he was smacked on the back of the head by an annoyed Blaise Zabini. He momentarily backed away, his world spinning.

"Come off it, prat" Blaise said, his annoyance making way for a smirk, "No girl likes a git like that. Now run along and give us a show"

After a long pause in which Draco considered hexing Blaise's balls off for hitting him, and a quick glance at Hermione, who had calmed down once again and had placed her head on Theo's shoulder, heard himself say "I'm sorry, Granger"

Her large chocolate eyes, which had been staring at the floor, shot up to look back at him. They were mad, shocked, and hurt. "I hate you," she said simply.

He shrugged "I'm still sorry. So are we doing this, or do you guys just like seeing me like this?" He gestured to himself.

This time Theo was the one who answered "I changed my mind" He said without a hint of amusement, still obviously annoyed at Draco's lack to tact "I don't need you to swim like a mermaid," the boy whipped out his wand and a burst of ice cold water emerged from the tip. Draco shrieked at how cold the water was, too cold. In seconds he was soaked.

"Just wear your man-thong for the rest of the night" He said. From his side, Hermione chuckled before whispering something in Theo's ear. The other boy frowned.

Draco glared at the pair of them, shivering, and sat back down. His bracelet was still glowing, and it wouldn't stop until the dare ended. He at least took back his cloak and draped it around him.

Then suddenly he felt dry, and a soft warmth started from the tip of his toes and made its way to his whole body. He sighed in relief, his eyes finding the person who made that happen.

His eyes fell on Hermione, who had her wand out. Theo shook his head at her but let it go. How the girl was still coherent enough to perform spells after one too many Firewhiskeys was beyond him. She gave him a nod, tucked back her wand, and looked away.

He looked at her, then at Theo, who was glaring at him, and for the second time that night, didn't hold back the words that practically fell off his lips, "Thank you Granger,"

"It's no problem" She clipped.

Well, that was the end of it then. He took the bottle, and looking around the room if he should continue, spun it round.

* * *

Blaise was still in his underpants – a pair of silky, emerald boxers – when they made their way back to Theo's office after the last dare. He had had to sing the school song in front of the black lake in his underwear.

"I give up, I'm done" Blaise said to no one in particular, his hands raised up theatrically in sign of defeat. This got the attention of the room, "I can't drink anymore, and I don't think I'd ever want to do _that_ anymore. This is my final round, and I _really_ want to see some snogging. Theo's doesn't count because I didn't need to see that"

They were all pleasantly plastered, each having downed at least seven to ten shots of Firewhiskey. Hermione had once again placed her head to rest on Theo's shoulder. They had been inseparable since Draco chose to open his stupid mouth. Theo was like a wall, protecting her from the world, even for just a night. The other boy cracked a smile and played with a lock of Hermione's hair, twirling and un-twirling the tight curl.

Draco, in his drunken state, saw red. No one touched Hermione Granger's hair. No, that came out wrong! No one in Slytherin consorted with Hermione Granger! There were standards, after all! Hermione Granger is below the standard! Hermione Granger had to go.

Blaise finally spun the bottle. It spun for a while, wobbled to a stop, and then stopped dead center in front of Draco.

Draco looked up at the dark, drunk Italian boy he was at the mercy of.

"Yes, you will do," Blaise smirked "Now, go snog Hermione Granger. And not one of those chaste little kisses, either, I want a proper _snog,_ five minutes' worth"

Draco's eyes went to the female across from him. She had blushed, her head coming up from Theo's shoulder. She turned her view to him and shook her head imperceptibly.

Draco knew what she meant.

 _Take the damn drink_.

He shrugged. Making up his mind, he walked over to where she was and pulled her up to her feet, "So, Granger, can I snog you?"

She gasped, blinking as she met his eyes. He pulled her closer, so close that he could count the freckles on her nose, see the hints of honey in her chocolate brown eyes.

She looked back at him in horror, and gulped. "If you must"

He didn't wait for her to finish her reply before he proceeded to crush his lips down on hers in a moment of sheer insanity.

* * *

 _Flecks of blue in a sea of gray._

 _Soft, warm lips._

 _Soft, wispy strands of hair, almost silky, easily running through her fingers. She knew it! Ha, she was right! He had soft hair._

 _Amazing buttocks._

 _Oh yes, she held those cheeks. Cupped those real good, too. She could never do it again. She_ _would_ _never do it again. So she did it tonight, liquid courage and all that, because who doesn't blame it on the drink? She would. He had amazing buttocks._

 _Guttural sound of approval. Hands combing through her hair, playing with her curls, holding her close so she wouldn't fall._

 _Her legs turning to mush. She was going to fall. Butterflies. So many butterflies._

 _Needing air, not wanting air, guilt for Ron somewhere in there, scoffing at her guilt for Ron. Focusing on his lips again. Wanting more. Registering who she was kissing. Not caring. Caring. Must push away._

Hermione groaned. Her world was spinning. Her head hurt, but her back hurt even worse. Hermione shuffled positions and found herself falling to the floor with a loud thump.

 _Where did my bed go?_ She thought, keeping her eyes closed because of all the spinning. She heard someone chuckle before she was hoisted up by very strong, able arms and placed back to wherever it was she had been sleeping. It was obviously _not_ her bed.

After she was sure the world had stopped spinning again, she opened her eyes. She was in an office of some kind. An office—her eyes widened.

"Good Morning, Hermione" she heard Theo say in his usual buttery voice. He sounded like he was teasing.

She groaned, as a particularly bad spell of nausea washed over her, "What happened, Nott?"

"Before I let you know," He said, smirk dancing on his lips, "I thought we had reached first-name basis last night?"

Hermione flushed, remembering, " _Theo_ then, what happened last night?"

She heard, rather than saw Theo's smirk. "Oh not much," He said, sounding like he was fighting back a grin "We continued a little bit. Draco dared you to unleash him from all his rounds for the rest of this month"

Hermione put a hand over her eyes, cursing her stupidity "That stupid, little ferret"

"And you, in turn, dumped them all to me" Her eyes widened and she sat up, her eyes meeting Theo's. He looked amused.

"I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed, wringing her hands "I'm going to get that little git—

He waved her off "It's okay, it's not like I have much to do, being Head Boy and all that"

Hermione could have sworn that the heat she was feeling had reddened her face to the roots of her hair. She looked at Theo in horror, willing the couch to just swallow her whole "Of course you do!"

Theo waved her off again, this time chuckling a little, finding it more amusing to regale her with stories of her lapses in judgment. "Oh, then you dared Draco to make you part of our… _boyband_ " If Hermione face wasn't beet red before, she was sure it was now. Hell, it was probably puce at this point, "Yeah, you said something about four flowers and meteor gardens"

She could have died of embarrassment right then. She could see it, her gravestone, marked with the words: _The Girl who spoke too much_ "I did?"

"So, in exchange for six extra rounds from Draco, Hermione, I just have three questions" He looked at her face, red with embarrassment "What on earth is a boyband? Why shouldn't the original Four Flowers be compared to K-pop bands? And why in Merlin's name should I be the one with the pineapple hairstyle?"

* * *

 ***Sigh* Finally done with this chapter! Sorry it took a while, though, I've been so caught up with work and developing this new DMHG story that walked into my brain one day. I haven't posted it yet. as of now it's barely a concept, but we'll see how it goes.**

 **Anyways, what do you think? I knew this was a long chapter, but I wanted the plot to move along. Wouldn't you have known but I wrote this chapter first, even before the prologue. It's had some major changes, but more or less went my way. This story, as you can tell, is a lot of fluff. I do love fluffy marshmallows. =)**

 **Anyway, hope you like it! - Asha**


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